Tag Archives: Golf

Loch Lomond and Ben Lomond

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I was doing the ironing on Sunday afternoon which is the thing that I hate most housework wise, so I always have to have the TV on to try to ease the boredom of it all.

It was golf. The end of the Scottish Open to be precise which took place at Loch Lomond Golf Club. The best thing about it was the scenery, they showed some lovely views of Loch Lomond and as I was brought up within walking distance of the place, it didn’t half make me feel homesick.

So when we went to Glasgow the other day we just had to travel back to Fife via Dumbarton and Stirling, stopping off at Balloch on the way.

The place was empty of people even although it was a beautiful evening but I suppose if you have that on your doorstep you do take it for granted – I know I did. It was only 7 o’clock with hours of daylight still left, but nowhere was open to hire a boat or anything – strange.

I must admit it did look even better on TV, this is just a teeny wee bit of the loch with the mountain of Ben Lomond in the background.

There are plenty photographs of Loch Lomond here.

St Andrews – Golf and Books

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We had a day out in St Andrews last Tuesday and as you can see the preparations for the British Open, which starts later this week are well underway.

The lawn shavers were out in force but I honestly couldn’t see any grass being trimmed off at all. Amazingly, members of the public were just wandering around the fairways, or should I say the hallowed ground. Previously I had thought that someone might have taken a pot-shot at you if you did that. Mind you, I find it very difficult to walk on grass when it is that well tended green velvet sort so I kept to the path.

This photo is from nearly the same place as the one in a previous post, showing the difference.

We had a nice lunch at The Central pub after we had been around the book shops. At first I thought it was going to be slim pickings but I ended up getting quite a book haul.

1. Police at the Funeral by Margery Allingham
2. The Harsh Voice by Rebecca West
3. The King’s General by Daphne du Maurier
4. The Man Who was Thursday by G.K. Chesterton
5. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
6. The Mystery Mile, The Crime at Black Dudley and Look to the Lady – a Margery Allingham omnibus.

I’m fairly sure that I read the du Maurier one in the year dot but possibly not, so I want to read it to complete her works.

Coincidentally I read in The Guardian on Thursday that their columnist Deborah Orr had just finished reading the Chesterton book and had really enjoyed it.

I’m probably the last person in the reading world to get around to The Guernsey Literary Potato Peel Pie Society Book but as it is set during the German occupation there, I think I’ll be reading this one soon.

I don’t want to know how many books I have in my TBR queue now, but it isn’t anything like 600 – I hope!

The Old Course, St Andrews

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We had a day out in St Andrews yesterday, making the most of a fleeting visit by that big orange thing in the sky.

I decided to take a photograph of the beginning (and end) of the Old Course. It really tickles me that there is a public pathway cutting straight across the fairway and people wander across it all the time. I suppose it must be a right of way otherwise it would have been got rid of long ago.

This place is a Mecca for golfers but it always embarasses me as I think it must be a horrible disappointment for them as the course itself is far from being a thing of beauty. It is really boring looking. I suppose if you are into golf then it is the history of the whole thing that gets to you. There is a museum of golf on the road behind the course.

I don’t play golf as I am strictly in the ‘Why ruin a good walk?’ camp, but local golfers of my acquaintance are equally unimpressed and have assured me that the best courses are around Gleneagles in Perthshire.

If you happen to live in Fife though you have plenty to choose from. Even teeny weeny villages have their own golf course.